Georgios Theotokis, Byzantine Military Tactics in Syria and Mesopotamia in the Tenth Century. A Comparative Study, Edinburgh University Press, Edinburgh 2018, pp. 348.

Abstract

T he reviewed book was written by Georgios Theotokis, a military historian who graduated from University of Glasgow, and is currently teaching history at the Ibn Haldun University in Turkey. The author belongs to a new generation of scholars dealing with the history of Byzantine warcraft, with particular focus on the reign of the Macedonian dynasty and on military theory. He has written two monographs, numerous well-received articles and has edited a number of collective works. It is worth emphasizing that although the 10th century is a rather popular period among Byzantine scholars, the reviewed piece is the first such comprehensive attempt to analyze the Byzantine tactics of the 10th century since the publishing of Eric McGeer’s work1. After a well-written methodological introduction, the author quickly moves on to the actual analysis in the chapter entitled The Grand Strategy of the Byzantine Empire, which is a clear reference to the controversial works by Edward N. Luttwak2. Fortunately, G. Theotokis does not try and prove the existence of any grand strategy planned for generations in advance, focusing rather on the strategic importance of the Empire’s eastern provinces. The first chapter also includes deliberations on the difference between tactics and strategy, and on the various attitudes to warfare adopted by mercenary forces, with a clear juxtaposition of the culture of bravery represented by west-